Sunday, December 9, 2012

NFL Picks - Week 14

Week 13 Results (9-6) – Overall (115-61-1)

It wasn’t 6-7, but that felt like another negative
week. I could use an 11-2 right
now. On to the next one…

Rams @ Bills

The first time the Rams played the Niners, they laid an egg
the next week, getting pounded by the Jets 27-13. Well, it’s post-Niners week again, and this
time they head to Buffalo
to face a Bills team that has been known to put up some points. I look for Fred Jackson and CJ Spiller to set
the tempo on the ground and for the Rams to lose again after getting up big the
previous week for San Francisco.

Cowboys @ Bengals

Another week, another NFL tragedy. Backup defensive lineman Josh Brent killed
his teammate, Jerry Brown, in an early Saturday morning drunk driving accident,
making it two weeks in a row that an NFL player has killed someone (and almost
himself again in this one). Dallas is undisciplined, and Cincinnati is playing solid football. I think Jermaine Gresham will make the big
plays in this one as the Bengals win their fifth straight.

Chiefs @ Browns

Kansas City
snapped an eight game losing streak with a heavy hearted victory over the
Panthers. This week they head to Cleveland to face a hot Browns team that has won their
last two and are an OT loss in Dallas
from being 4-1 in their last five. I
expect a huge day from Trent Richardson as the Browns look to close out the ’12
campaign on an upswing.

Titans @ Colts

Quick, who has the 5th best record in the AFC
behind division leaders New England, Baltimore, Houston, and Denver?
Pittsburgh? Nope. Cincinnati? Nope.
The Jets? Ha! Yep, rookie stud Andrew Luck will try to take
care of business at home against a 4-8 Tennessee
team and keep a tight grip on the 5th seed in the AFC. I’ll take the Colts to win by a field
goal.

Bears @ Vikings

Last week Major Wright dropped Sidney Rice, but fortunately for
Seahawks fans, the receiver fell into the endzone with the winning OT
score. With that loss, Chicago has dropped three of the last four
and may end up being a team whose record overstates its true worth. Now they’re without Brian Urlacher for at
least the next two critical games. If
the Vikings have any hopes of making the playoffs, they must win this one. Expect Minnesota
to put forth its greatest effort, even without Percy Harvin. Adrian Peterson dominates on the ground as
the Vikings win a low scoring affair.

Chargers @ Steelers

He’s baaaaaaack!
After three long weeks of Byron Leftwich and Charlie Batch, the Steelers
get their MVP back. New England, Houston, and Denver are
getting all the hype, but with Ben Roethlisberger under center and the way
their defense is playing, Pittsburgh
may be the team to beat come the postseason in the AFC. I see no way the Chargers pull off the road
upset, especially with as mentally messed up Philip Rivers has been. The Steelers make a statement in this
one.

Eagles @ Bucs

One of these teams is still playing for something, and it’s
not the Eagles. Losers of eight
straight, Philly has all but packed their backs on the 2012 season. Nick Foles looked good last week against the
Cowboys, and backup rusher Bryce Brown has been absolutely tremendous in LeSean
McCoy’s absence, totaling 347 rushing yards and four TDs over the last two
games. Brown gets his toughest test this
week when he faces Tampa’s
#1 ranked rush defense. They’ll need
another big game from Foles, but I think the Bucs will be too much on
offense. I like Doug Martin to get back
on track after two subpar games and for Josh Freeman to continue growing this
offense. Bucs by 10.

Ravens @ Redskins

Baltimore
got beat at home by Charlie Batch, and RGIII shined brightly in the MNF
spotlight in a win against the Giants.
Redskins roll right? Not so fast
my friend. Yes, the Ravens struggle on
the road and will be without Terrell Suggs (torn biceps), but I’m expecting
them to play like veterans this week.
With games against the Broncos, Giants, and Bengals on deck and a
tightening AFC North, Baltimore
really needs this one. The Ravens are
the better team, and I think they get a hard fought win.

Falcons @ Panthers

The Atlanta Dangerfields head to Carolina with their NFC leading 11-1
record. Despite just one mulligan (a
four point loss in New Orleans)
on the year, the Falcons don’t get no respect.
No, they’re not the 2010 Packers, but 11-1 is still 11-1. They’re already wrapped up the division, but
expecting a letdown would be unwise in my opinion. Mike Smith wants to win every division game,
and by doing so, get one step closer to clinching home field advantage
throughout the playoffs. Michael Turner
scores twice, giving him five TDs in his last four games.

Jets @ Jaguars

Wake me up when this one is over. How hilarious is that Jets QB situation? Mark Sanchez continues to shit the bed and
was replaced last week by Greg McElroy in that 7-6 snoozefest against the
Cardinals last week. So who starts this
week at Jacksonville? Gotta be Baby Jesus right? Ha!
The owner wants McElroy, and the coaching staff wants Sanchez. As pathetic as he’s played, Sanchez gets the
start. I couldn’t have asked for that
scenario to play out any “better”. The
Jets win the field position battle and the game because Jacksonville is even more pathetic than they
are.

Dolphins @ 49ers

I mentioned what happened to the Rams after their first
encounter with the 49ers. What did San Francisco do the
following week? They stomped the Bears
at home 32-7 in Colin Kaepernick’s coming out party. Expect to see more of the same this week when
Miami comes to
town. A focused Niners squad gets back
on track in a game that shouldn’t be close.

Cardinals @ Seahawks

Speaking of games that shouldn’t be close, the Cardinals
take their eight game winning streak to, possibly, the toughest place in the
league to play. If that wasn’t enough,
they’ve got a horrid QB situation that makes the Jets look like the
Montana-Young-Bono Niners. Russell
Wilson is playing really good football and is doing a fine job of complimenting
a strong run game and stout defense. The
pieces are starting to come together at the right time. Seattle
rolls.

Saints @ Giants

After back-to-back losses the Saints hype has subsided, and
if they are to have any hope of making the playoffs, they need to run the
table. The Giants have been playing some
ugly football around that trouncing of the Packers, but it’s getting to be that
time of year again. You know, when the
Giants go on a run and dominate everyone in the playoffs. The NFC East has become a tight race, and
after this one, the Giants travel to Atlanta and
Baltimore the
next two weeks. They take care of
business Sunday and maintain their division lead.

Lions @ Packers

The last time these two teams squared off the Packers won a
pretty boring game by four points. The
Packers treated that contest like a preseason matchup, focusing heavily on
establishing a run game. Well with James
Starks now joining Cedric Benson on the sidelines, the Packers were forced to
bring back veteran Ryan Grant to back up Alex Green. Jordy Nelson is going to miss this one with a
hamstring injury, so Detroit
gets a bit of help in trying to end their five game losing streak. During that stretch the Lions have
surrendered an average of 32 points per game.
Aaron Rodgers, smelling blood in the water, throws for four scores and
runs in another.

Texans @ Patriots

Grab the popcorn folks.
This should be entertaining television.
Two of the top teams in the game square off in this week’s finale, a
game that I think sets up nicely for the home team. I expect the Patriots to try and make this a
high scoring contest and put a lot of pressure on Matt Schaub and the road Texans
to keep up. They’ll stack the box against
Arian Foster and take their chances that Schaub won’t be able to match TDs with
Brady. New England
gets a win and inches a bit closer to the conferences #1 seed with three weeks
of regular season action remaining.